Information Only about Abaco...

[Moderator242]

This thread is for information only about Abaco. Any inquiries, requests, comments or sentiments will be removed.

Any information about any cay and the conditions of any home, marina, boat, etc., please post here. Please be sure to be specific in the title.

[Moderator242]

Guana
There is no power on Guana and no phones. MH airport is closed to commercial flights. MH was heavily damaged and I did hear on the Cruisers Net that Lofty Fig would be open again today or yesterday. I live on Guana and can tell you that we don't know when we will have power or even inter island phone access. We communicate by VHF. There is some power in MH and the last I heard there is still no power in MOW or Hopetown. Its not a pretty picture here in the Abacos. Our days consist of cleaning up, going for ice, buying fuel for our generators and crashing to our beds at night. We got news that there is no propane in MH and it might be a week before there is anymore to buy. Orchid Bay has been having problems with the fuel pumps and are only selling fuel at certain times during the day. The grocery store is open for a few hours in the morning and a few hours in the afternoon because they have a generator but it is used to keep the food cold and it gets pretty darn hot and sticky inside the building.

Quote:
Originally Posted by sailaholics
:) Hello to Everyone in the Abacos. I'm wondering if anyone can give us any information on electricity and if there is any in Marsh Harbour, Hopetown, Guana Cay??????? We have a house in Guana and we need to fly to Marsh Harbour to take pictures for the insurance adjustors. Is the airport open? Any hotels ??? Any help you can be to us is greatly appreciated.

Kind Regards,
Debbie and Matthew Rice
Beach Watch Great Guana Cay

[Moderator242]

Am sending this from behind TC Mini Mart. Sinc's wireless working here only. Water came back on yesterday. Power on in some areas expect more today. Phones working locally only. Flooding on roads has gone down and are now passable. I can't get specific about houses etc as you can't tell unless you've been inside. Just about every place has had some water damage, either salt water from surge or rain. Nothing like Floyd but pretty ugly. Airports open. Fuel available. Spinnaker opening today for drinks only. Their kitchen was destroyed. No other restaurants open.Leaving here at noon. HAD ENOUGH

Dave C.

[Alison & Peter]

I believe the Marsh Harbour Airport has opened today for commercial flights. I know BahamasAir is flying in there this afternoon.

[Moderator242]

Hi all - I am in FL now - got here Tuesday on Vintage out of TCB after spending Jeanne and Frances in my house on Galleon Bay. Had a lot more water - lost many more shingles in Jeanne. But, still have a roof (under tarps) and had no salt water. The surge was about half-way between Floyd and Frances. Jeanne was much worse than Frances, esp in MHH. I plan to go back when they get the power and water and phones back. Maybe a week or two - dont know. Suggest folks dont go until services are back - there isnt much you can do anyway unless you have an intact house with a big generator and there aren't many of those!
Windward Beach Rd. and Ocean Blvd were both flooded and impassable until Tuesday PM - Ocean may be still. There was extensive rain water damage to most buildings. The stuff was driven through any available opening, and through roofs when shingles were blasted off. Blown out soffits, gables, fascia, windows, etc. are common. Problem now is getting materials for repairs. When I left Tuesday building materials were said to be duty-free (without the onerous forms and inspections first announced) on the Cruisers Net, but the customs officer at TC airport hadnt heard anything about it. So, more to come....


dp

[Moderator242]

TC / Royal Palm - Improving Thursday 11:30AM TC time After two days of being unable to reach my parents here is the latest:

TC
Water is back (it comes and goes) but its been mostly on since last night.
The hotel is partly open.
Spinnaker is closed.
The supermarket in TC is open and there are no shortages.
Phones within the TC area are working (ie, TC to TC) .
BEC (Electric Company) is working extremely hard in order to able to restore power as soon as possible. They are all over TC fixing lines and poles. Doing a great job.
Yesterday for the first time since Jeanne there was boat activity in the marina.

MHH
Solomons Market is open - no apparent shortages besides generators.
Most of the hardware stores in MHH are reopening to the public today after cleanup.
Price is Right remains closed. Other grocery stores are opened or reopening.
Airports (MHH and TCB) are open.

More later
The massive clean up and fixing job underway here is yielding the first results.

Property notes
For the people that had asked information about specific property:
THe pink garages next to the tennis courts have shingles missing and might have been partly flooded. The overall structure is pretty much intact.

The Blue house near the point lost a significant portion of the roof.
The Turquoise house -Dolphin smthg- (always near the point) has no apparent exterior damage.

[Moderator242]

dc-3/donations
just talked to frank berry at calypso air. he is going to wait until tuesday to fly out with supplies. more time needed to gather supplies. he said stops in marsh harbor and treasure cay. clothing, dry goods, anything welcomed.

Keys George

[AbacoVacations]

9/30/04 1027AM – MESSAGE FROM JOHNYCAKE LOCATED ON PELICAN SHORES, MARSH HARBOUR.

Johnnycake was calling us from on top of a rock North of Marsh Harbour. Transmission was very poor but this is what we were able to understand during his call.
1. Private citizens of Spanish Wells brought over via boat ice, water and some frozen supplies.
2. Johnnycake who owns Sea Star Car Rentals donated one of his vans so they could distribute the goods to those who need supplies within MHH and surrounding areas on Great Abaco. The supplies are also being delivered to Man-O-War, Hope Town, Green Turtle, and Guana. Johnnycake could not thank these people enough for their support to Abaco.
3. BEC is working very hard to restore power and doing an excellent job.
4. Electric has been restored to the area of MHH from the Shell Station to around the Memorial Plaza and some areas of Murphy Town and Dundas Town.
5. No water around MHH airport terminal building.
6. Most roads cleared enough within MHH, Murphy Town and Dundas Town to get around by car. Still not able to get out onto Eastern Shores. First house on right as you go to Eastern Shores has a lot of debris around it including a vehicle under it.
7. All downtown businesses are closed today most are still cleaning up.
8. Most of johnnycakes cars are out with emergency personnel and insurance people. Johnnycake is using the front steps at his old office building next to Solomons’s if any one needs to find him for a rental car.
9. Abaco Insurance is using johnnycakes old office(next to Solomens) to conduct their insurance business if you are looking for them.
10. K&S and Texaco are pumping gas. Shell not pumping yet.
11. Only Private planes landing at Marsh Harbour Airport.
12. Jib Room – most docks are OK.
13. Abaco Hardware open for building supplies only.
14. Bahama Palm Shores has power according to what johnnycake could see.

Again we thank johnnycake for all the information he has been able to provide. As we are aware, johnnycakes cell bill is really getting very high and we all appreciate all of his efforts getting this information to all. If any of you would like to help with the cost of johnnycakes cell bill, please contact us directly at avr@abacovacations.com. Any help would be much appreciated.

[Moderator242]

just returned from gtc. everyone's busy getting the island back in shape. a lot of people have water damage from the surge, cisterns are being pumped out. we took bottled water with us and our cistern was fine, but there weren't a lot of takers for water. the bread we took was greatly appreciated. sid's grocery was fine and had plenty of food. wrecking tree and the mcintosh had a lot of water damage but they are busy trying to reopen. brian was already rebuilding at sundowner's and thinks he might be selling beer by this weekend. the kitchen still looked ok so that may be open soon, too. i didn't get a chance to go by, but i understand that the art gallery had a lot of damage. quite a bit of damage to docks. the water taxis are on their regular schedule, but are not doing charters due to a shortage of fuel. power is back on down to bethel estates and some phones are working for local calls. it may be a while for long distance. dsl is up, just got an email this morning. we flew back with willis and don mcintosh and they should be at my house saturday and sunday, so if you have any specific questions please send me an email at lakedogz@aol.com and reference gtc so i'll know who it is.

[Moderator242]

September 28, 2004


TO: Elbow Cay Property Owners
FR: Carrie, Jane & Don

Hurricane Jeanne was a tough and scary storm. The surge was three plus feet over the sidewalk by the office. At the height of the storm the waves slammed into the top of the ECP building. Most of the docks on the Sea of Abaco are gone. The north end dock is “humped” but ok. Marsh Harbour is devastated ! Only the Jib Room marina and Boat harbours are operational. Sapodilly’s has a boat in the front of it..

Hope Town is a mess to say the least. The dunes held from Steve Bests almost to High Hopes. This was a very different hurricane. The 100 mph winds came out of the northwest from midnight to 9 AM. High tide was at 6 am. The second half of the storm came from the SE with even higher winds and lasted for 5 hours! Harbour’s Edge is a write off. A lot of docks in the harbour were badly damaged. For the most part, our houses did ok. It could have been a lot worse. We can recover from this like we did after Floyd but there’s a tremendous amount of HARD work to be done.

The insurance adjustors have been to quite a few of our properties after Jeanne. We’re working hard to get the claims taken care of. Some of your properties need to be attended to immediately – Sublime, Chrysalis, Krouts, Palmetto Crest, Wanamakers, Hatchet House are number one priority. We cannot assess all of the electrical ie pumps, a/cs etc. If they were on the ground, they’re probably trashed. Here’s our assessment of the houses.

Don Aiken: Lots of sand, the ceiling in the bedroom closest to Nigh Creek came down. We pulled out the rest plus all wet insulation. Dock has some minor damage. The adjustor is with Don now.

Doug Behrendt: Gazebo screening gone, “dive” platform looked ok. Basement flooded. Don thinks everything is ok. The adjustor has been there
Godfrey Thomas New pergo flooring ruined. Sand blasted all paint, dock is badly “humped” with boat house in tact.

Steve Best More water inside – but not quite as bad as Frances

Peggy Brawly Lots of tree damage. The house fared ok. The adjustor has been there.

Billy Cash Major roof damage; storm surge swept under the house-everything is full of salt water. We removed the carpet, linoleum, and now we have to remove the sub floor. The adjustor has been there. Central a/c, pumps, H/W heater, are useless. The new deck and tile work are ok. Fridge & stove are a write off, too.

Marge Colley From the inside, the house looks like we could rent it tomorrow. The adjustor has been there The insurance adjustor is getting a structural engineer to look at it as the foundation seems to have shifted a bit.

Day Shelmire House did well this time. The shed went under water again. More sand in laundry room.

Jim Laughlin Down Thru had no additional damage from this storm.
Crow’s Nest porch screening blew in. Lost some gutters and shingles. The adjustor has been there. Down Thru has a dock as does Nest Egg. Crow’s Nest’s dock, ramp and the rental docks are history.

Olivia Dyer Chrysalis really leaked! Major roof damage. The interior walls and ceiling show water damage, some siding is gone, salt water throughout the house. Sea water in basement…Mr. Spence’s family had a lot of damage after Frances so he is unavailable now. The adjustor has been there. We have “dried in the roof”. I have estimates for three types of roofs-regular shingles, architectural shingles, or a Bermuda roof using hardy board.

Paul Gooding Habitat did well.

Tom & Ruth Harkins House and boat house ok. Need some new guttering. House feels dry inside.

Geoff Holding More roof damage in main house. Studio has some water inside and a few shingles gone./ Porch railing damaged.
Phil Jensen Nothing additional that we can see. All pumps, etc. are a write off. The adjustor has been there

Jim & Betty Klein No additional problems that we can see

John Koerner Half of dock is gone, sea water through out the basement. Central A/c is a write off.

Ann & John Krout Major roof damage. Generator is probably a write-off. Linoleum on first floor is wet with salt water. The adjustor has been there. We are tarping the roof and airing out. Dock has a big hump in the middle of it.

Ricky Lait No additional external damage. Have not been inside yet.

Ken Langston The adjustor has been there. Shed roof blew off. Don went inside today and opened up a few windows. Everything is dry.

Tom Bata Some more singles went but not too bad. The adjustor has been there

Colin Buffin More roof damage, The adjustor has been there. Pumps are gone.

Bud Manley Cupola blew off roof. We think it’s in Sea-to-Sea’s yard. Have not been inside.

Tom Maxfield Looks fine from outside. Have not been inside

Jim Modisette some dock damage

Adelle Pollock More roof damage. Second whirly bird gone. A/C’s need replacing. Guttering gone, needs lots of paint. Dock is gone.

Glen Pritchard NE1 has some water damage on ceiling inside and porch. Central a/c, pumps etcetera are probably shot. The adjustor has been there.

NE2 has about the same damage. The adjustor has been there.

Molly Rice New roof is needed. Ceilings on second floor are all water stained. Kitchen had salt water on all counters. Generator is shot. Water inside shop on harbour. Deck railing is partially gone, awning is completely finished. NEED ADJUSTOR. We are tarping roof and airing things out.

Kenneth Roberts More leaks around windows mainly. Dining room table is damaged. Kitchen floor tiles came up…

Peter Schmidt Needs a lot of work! North side door twisted out of framing, the back wall seems unstable.

Al Shapiro Dock is gone! The adjustor has been there. New roof looks good. We’re checking inside today. More trees down. Tons of broken up junk in road that washed in with the storm surge.

Jim Sheldon House did well again. . The adjustor has been there

Joe Shrier More dune gone but house deck is still there. Steps to beach (which isn’t there) are gone. Some water damage on floor in bedroom. The adjustor has been there.

Marty Skovish House did well. A/c is probably a write off…

Alan Barnes Sundancer had a bit of water in dining room. Vinyl cover on roof blew off on north side. Jerry tacked it down yesterday. Valentines lost it’s pergola and some porch railing. Have not been downstairs yet but upstairs fared well.

Natalie Javier Westwind did not do as well this time. The north bedroom is flooded with rainwater. We think it came through the vent pipe; the south bedroom is very sandy, the garage door blew off; the window in the old office leaked sand and water around the frame; the kitchen is flooded with salt water. We think it came thru the chimney when it lost it’s cap. The old roof did ok – a bundle of shingles will do it although it will need to be tarred and painted again. All that is left of the dock are the pilings. The yard is a HUGE mess!

Jim Warfield Generator roof blew off; the other shed tipped over. The adjustor has been there

Bill Klemman Lots more sand, a few shingles, but basically no additional damage

Ben Franklin No add’l damage although the beams in the gazebo(s) a shaky; the pool has more sand…


If some of you want to come down to help clean up, please remember that there is no
power, phones, no cell service unless you climb to the top of the lighthouse – and even
then it does not work all the time; and no internet. We’re told power and phones won’t be
up for three to five weeks although it could be less if the underwater cable isn’t
damaged.. The Harbour Lodge has rooms. We have cancelled all October rentals.
We are working to be up and running by November 1. If you have a credit balance with
us and/our hurricane insurance, we are proceeding with all necessary repairs that we can
cover out of your accounts. For uncovered damages ie. docks, walkways, yards – some of
these are going to cost quite a bit and we are going to need some money.

The government is waiving duty on everything that needs to be replaced (you’ll have to
prove you lost it in these storms) for the next 60 days.

Carrie, Jane, and Don

[stevell88]

I have some photo's of residences and a view of the boats in MH Marina if anyone would like them. I can send via e-mail. Send me an e-mail and I will send the photo's to you.

Steve Ludwig
steveLL88@yahoo.com